If you are headed toward downtown Phoenix Jan. 28-31, plan to take an alternate route if you normally use Interstate 10.
Westbound lanes I-10 will be closed tonight (Jan. 28) from 10 p.m. until 4 a.m. Monday (Jan. 31) from State Route 143 to the I-17 split for work on the Broadway Curve Improvement Project.
Arizona Department of Transportation advises motorists to expect delays and to allow plenty of extra travel time in the area.
Several freeway-access ramps also will be closed in the West Chandler-South Tempe area:
- Southbound SR 143 onto westbound I-10.
- 40th and 32nd streets onto westbound I-10.
- Elliot, Baseline and Broadway roads onto westbound I-10.
- Westbound U.S. 60 (Superstition Freeway) HOV ramp onto westbound I-10.
- Mill Avenue onto westbound U.S. 60.
During the closures, crews will repair pavement and shift a section of the work zone.
When I-10 reopens early Monday, motorists will see that the westbound I-10 lanes from SR 143 to I-17 have shifted from the outside of the highway to the inside so crews can create a safe work zone while relocating utilities without impacting traffic. Drivers can expect this configuration to be in place for approximately three months, during which utility and drainage work will be done as workers relocate a 66-inch storm drain and extend a Phoenix 12-inch waterline encasement sleeve.
ADOT recommends these alternate routes during this weekend’s I-10 closure:
- From westbound I-10 in South Tempe-West Chandler use northbound SR 143 to westbound Loop 202 (Red Mountain Freeway) to reconnect with westbound I-10 beyond the closure.
- Drivers on westbound U.S. 60 (Superstition Freeway) use northbound Loop 101 (Price Freeway) to westbound Loop 202 to reconnect with westbound I-10 beyond the closure.
- Drivers heading to the West Valley from the Southeast Valley can bypass the work zone by using the Loop 202 (South Mountain Freeway) to reconnect with I-10 near 59th Avenue.
- Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport traffic should use SR 143 or Loop 202 and enter at the eastern end of the airport.
Work moving along briskly on 3-plus-year project
ADOT reports that last weekend 1,000 cubic yards of concrete were poured for the new Broadway Road bridge over I-10, a critical step that establishes footing for the structure, which plays an important role in the support and distribution of weight on it.
The department says that volume of concrete weighs just over 2,000 tons and can cover a football field a half-foot deep.
The new Broadway Road bridge is among several being replaced or widened in the improvement project. Crews will take down the existing Broadway Road bridge after the new one is completed later this year.
Workers also continue to install drilled-shaft foundations that will support columns and abutments for the new 48th Street bridges over I-10. Crews also began installing steel rebar footing on the first abutment for the Broadway Road bridge and drilled-shaft foundations that will support abutments to widen the Guadalupe Road bridge over I-10. The foundation for new noise walls from Baseline Road to Elliot Roads also are being formed.
Slow to 55 mph, please!
Drivers are reminded that the speed limit within the 11-mile work zone is 55 mph. They’re also reminded to not only slow down but also stay alert to protect themselves, other motorists and crews working to improve I-10.
Bilingual Project Information Line: 602-501-5505.
Project website: i10broadwaycurve.com.
